For a fun time, put paint chip cards of different colors on a binder ring, and punch a large hole in each shade. Go outside and try to match all the colors!! Clara is always up for any excuse to go outside, so this activity was an instant hit! We brought our swatches to a […]
Super Easy Last-Minute Easter Card
April 19, 2011 by
Clara and I had lots of fun crafting up a few last-minute goodies for Easter, including this CUTE (and frugal) card using her fingerprints!! I drew a line to mark the soil with a brown marker, then Clara pressed about 1/2 of her index finger on an orange ink pad to make the carrots. She […]
Painting with Water
April 14, 2011 by
When I was a kid, I remember walking through the house with a clean, dry paintbrush in hand and in my mind I was totally painting the entire house in bright hues of sky blue, mandarin orange, cotton candy pink, and lime green. On my imaginary bedroom wall, hundreds of “masterpiece” murals were painted!! Fast […]
How to Make Your Own Sunshine
April 6, 2011 by
Are you tired of Winter? Do you long for warmer weather?? Do you wish Spring would hurry up and arrive already??? Then it’s time to make your own sunshine! It’s quick and easy to do!! Start by inviting the kids to paint several coffee filters with watercolor paint — the brighter, the better! We love […]
Crafts for Tots
March 16, 2011 by
It’s National Youth Art Month!! What better way to celebrate than with some toddler-friendly crafts? As always, be sure to carefully supervise the little ones while crafting. Tots love to explore art by experimenting with lots of different mediums. Here are some inexpensive and FUN projects to try! Some pieces of packaging tape and bits […]
Easy Thumb Printed Shamrocks
March 14, 2011 by
I love using the kids’ fingerprints in crafts! It’s a fun way to treasure their tiny fingerprints which will only be tiny for such a short time. Clara and I made some St. Patrick’s Day cards using her thumb print with a green ink pad to make a series of hearts which formed the shamrock […]
Easy Balloon Birthday Card
March 10, 2011 by
While Emily was at school, Clara and I enjoyed working on a special surprise birthday card to give to Em later this month. It was super-easy and lots of fun to make! We used construction paper, and drew lines with black marker for the balloon strings. Then Clara had lots of fun adding all the […]
No-Mess Shiny Pot of Gold
March 4, 2011 by
We are getting ready for St. Patrick’s Day, and Clara loved making this pot of gold craft from gold foil chocolate wrappers! It’s a quick and easy no-mess craft! Added bonus — I’m giving you an excuse to eat chocolate!! Um… Did somebody say….. CHOCOLATE???? Nom, nom, nom…….. I cut out a black pot from […]
Homemade Rhythm Set
February 15, 2011 by
Using some PVC pipe, a few recyclables, and some other household items, we made a fun rhythm set!! The sticks were made using empty heavy-duty cardboard rolls from plastic wrap. (I ask friends to save them for us!) Since most of the items were plastic, the “music” didn’t get too loud. Clara loved exploring all […]
Play Dough Bakery!
February 9, 2011 by
A good part of this morning was spent playing with Play Dough! I recommend at least 15 minutes a day of mandatory play dough time for everyone — it is great stress relief, and perfect for lots of pretend play! We sometimes make our own, but Clara was gifted with some Play Doh over the […]
Valentine Sweets for My Sweetie
February 8, 2011 by
A warm welcome to our newest sponsor, Happy Heels by Hannah! Hannah and her sister sew and sell fleece blankets that are designed to keep babies warm in a car seat — brilliant! Frugal Family Fun Blog readers can get 10% off their order by using coupon code — FFFB10 Sponsors help make this blog […]
“Bee” My Valentine
February 3, 2011 by
Clara and I had so much fun making these super-easy Valentine cards!! We used this Melissa and Doug Rainbow Stamp Pad again with great results — the ink is washable and wipes off easily with a baby wipe, plus the colors are quite vibrant! I cut up several pieces of white paper and helped Clara […]
Ice Cream Shop!
January 31, 2011 by
What could possibly be more fun than playing with snow?? Playing with snow in your monkey pajamas!! Woo hoo!!! 1 Container of Clean Snow + plastic spoons + ice cream scoop + empty yogurt containers = 1 Happy Kiddo! Pajamas are not strictly required, though they are highly recommended — as is a towel to […]
My Kind of Baking
January 21, 2011 by
I made up a few pretend baking kits for the girls — which kept them happily occupied, and it’s a great quiet time activity! They are SUPER easy and quick to make up. I cut up some very inexpensive craft felt using a few cookie cutters as my pattern, added some pieces for “icing” and […]
Crafts for Martin Luther King, Jr. Day
January 17, 2011 by
Do your kids have off from school today? Looking for something creative to do?? In honor of Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, I thought it would be fun to highlight a few crafts to promote peace. Each one of these peace signs is unique, and it’s a very toddler-friendly art project!! Instructions can be found […]
Shiny Snowflake Mosaics
January 13, 2011 by
Clara loved how shiny these snowflakes turned out, plus it was a fun way to practice her developing fine-motor skills! This project kept her happily busy for a long time, and there was hardly any mess to clean up — Yay for no-mess (frugal) crafts!!! I gave Clara a piece of tin foil to tear […]
Kid-Made “Sandpaper” Letter Set
January 12, 2011 by
This “sandpaper” letter set was made by Emily as a gift to her little sister — and Clara adores them! I have seen similar sets in pricey catalogs. We used 2″ felt alphabet stickers ($2.80) and 3″ wooden disks ($0.24 each x 26) from the craft store. For a grand total of just $9.04! Emily […]
Gum Ball Machine Craft for Tots
January 4, 2011 by
It’s no secret that we love to create projects that bring lots of COLOR into our household — they are so bright, cheerful, and they always make me smile! This particular project kept Clara happily occupied for a long time, and doubles as a prop for pretend play. I traced a large serving bowl onto […]
